Monday, October 1, 2012

Washek Pfeffer - The Math Dinner

The Washek dinner was great. I baked some baguettes and a chicken dinner. Bronwyn made a Pavolova. Washek was good fun having finished his work at Rice and was glad to get the drink on - said he was so tired of Mathematics right now he didn't want to talk about it anymore. He was there working with some other preeminent mathematician on a math problem of some sort - which they successfully proved apparently. Alex made the martinis. Washek hit on everyone else's girl. Anyhow - it was great to see Washek and Lida both. We've been trying to put this dinner together for four years now - and something has always interrupted it. And - it seems Washek has just published another book on his integration proofs. He says he will send me a copy, but that I will only be able to read the cover and preface - so it's like the last one. Randy's girl Natasha asked Washek what exactly it was that he does. He said to her, when you take a little wire ring and dip it in soapy water to blow bubbles, you like that because it makes bubbles. I consider all of the forces at work and explain why the bubbles are made mathematically. They leave today for Santa Fe.

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Present Tense

Living in or worrying about the past, or about something once done that you could have done better is a useless endeavor - for no amount of energy can change the past. The future is still to unfold and may never be, and so waiting today in anticipation of something tomorrow is just as fruitless as is your lamenting the past. Our only time to truly live is in the present - this moment - and to do all that is doable.